VIFC work permits and exemption pathway

What the VIFC framework confirms

The Vietnam International Financial Centre is one legal entity operating through Ho Chi Minh City and Da Nang hubs. The employment proposition is tied to eligible foreign nationals working for VIFC member organizations. Working in either city, without the required member-organization connection and individual eligibility, does not establish access to a VIFC permit or exemption.

Eligible foreign nationals working for VIFC member organizations may receive work permits or other applicable work-authorisation routes for up to 10 years, subject to individual eligibility and the official decision. Decree No. 325/2025/ND-CP expressly excludes accompanying family members from the Article 5(1) exemption category. A family member’s residence card does not establish work permission.

Those statements identify available routes, not automatic outcomes. The reviewed materials do not establish the full eligibility criteria or operational process; Decree No. 325/2025/ND-CP does expressly exclude accompanying family members from the Article 5(1) exemption category.

Resolution No. 222/2025/QH15 established the VIFC. Decree No. 323/2025/ND-CP formalized its legal foundation. Decree No. 324/2025/ND-CP concerns tax. Decree No. 325/2025/ND-CP and Decree No. 327/2025/ND-CP concern labour, entry/exit, and residence mechanics (Decree 325 for employment, Decree 327 for immigration).

Permit, exemption, authorization and residence are different

A work permit is one route within the confirmed framework. A work-permit exemption is a different route for a person who satisfies its conditions. Extended work authorization describes the permission period available under the VIFC proposition. The supplied material does not establish that these labels are interchangeable or that one document performs every function.

An exemption from a permit requirement should not be described as an exemption from all employment controls. Before work begins, the individual and member organization should identify what official recognition, record or authorization is required.

Residence is separate. Eligible VIFC member-organization foreign workers may receive UD1 residence cards for up to 10 years, subject to eligibility and guidance. Holding or seeking UD1 residence does not by itself answer which work route applies.

The distinctions should remain visible in an offer letter and internal approval record. State the expected work route, the expected residence route and each unresolved condition separately.

High-level Executive Agency criteria control the exemption question

The exemption proposition is tied to foreign experts who meet high-level expertise criteria defined by the Executive Agency. Seniority, salary, an executive title or an employer’s description of a candidate as an expert does not appear in the reviewed official materials as a substitute for those criteria.

The one-stop Executive Agency is part of the VIFC structure. Its detailed mandate and case process are not supplied.

A candidate should assemble a role narrative and professional evidence only after checking the official requirements. No specific credential, experience period, compensation threshold or document can be stated from the verified facts.

Member status is a separate threshold. A proposed employer should evidence that the engaging organization is the relevant VIFC member rather than relying on a group name or office location.

How to read the up-to-10-year boundary

Extended work authorization may be available for up to 10 years. “Up to” is a ceiling, not the standard period and not a promise that a particular expert or employee will receive a decade. The actual route and period need confirmation for the individual case.

The reviewed official materials do not say whether the maximum is available on a first decision, how a shorter period is selected, or how employment and personal-document validity affect it.

Permit duration, exemption duration, extended work authorization and UD1 residence duration should not be collapsed into one date without legal support.

Employers should describe the benefit cautiously in recruitment materials. A sound statement is that eligible foreign nationals working for member organizations may receive the relevant work route and authorization for up to the confirmed maximum, with the result subject to the applicable criteria and official decision.

Decree No. 283/2026/ND-CP takes effect on 10 September 2026 and updates administrative penalties in labour, social insurance and Vietnamese workers abroad, including foreign-worker and employer compliance. It does not change the eligibility route; employers should recheck current penalty and recordkeeping requirements before work begins.

Accompanying-family wording needs a separate assessment

The verified proposition is narrower: Article 5(1) of Decree No. 325/2025/ND-CP expressly excludes accompanying family members from the specified work-permit exemption category. Family residence and family work rights are different. A spouse and children under 18 may receive UD2 cards for the same duration as the principal’s UD1 card, but residence linkage is not independent employment authorization.

Before an accompanying person accepts duties, identify the person’s own role, the engaging VIFC member and the required work authorization.

No inference should be made for a child under 18. The confirmed facts establish a residence category, not work permission.

No foreign-worker cap does not remove individual review

The VIFC framework has no cap on the proportion of foreign workers. This is relevant to workforce planning because the reviewed official materials do not impose a percentage ceiling on a member organization’s international staffing within the VIFC proposition.

The no-cap feature does not make every candidate eligible. Each person still needs the correct permit or exemption route and, where relied upon, the required expertise classification. The organization must also establish the relevant VIFC member connection.

The rule should not be broadened into a claim about every labor or staffing obligation.

An employer should therefore maintain an individual route record for each foreign worker rather than treating the workforce as approved collectively.

Employer preparation checklist

First, identify the exact VIFC member organization engaging the individual and retain official evidence of its status. Do not rely only on a shared brand, group affiliation or office in a hub.

Second, classify the proposed route. Record whether the organization expects a permit, an expert exemption or another confirmed form of work authorization, and keep UD1 residence as a separate workstream.

Third, if relying on expert status, map the candidate’s evidence to the current Executive Agency criteria. Do not invent thresholds from customary hiring practice.

Fourth, state the requested authorization period without promising the maximum. Reconcile the proposed employment arrangement, work authorization and residence plan only after checking current validity rules.

Fifth, assess every accompanying family member separately. UD2 family residence does not prove permission to work, and the exemption wording should not be generalized.

Finally, establish monitoring for changes in role, employer, member status, work location or principal residence.